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New Drupal version provides important upgrades to Drupal 8

Improved user experience is being used to sum up the new Drupal 8.6.0, hailed as the “most significant update to Drupal 8 yet”. The updated version of Drupal 8 – set to be released later this month – is to be easier to install, offer more stable upgrades for technical teams and give marketing and content editing teams a better user experience. It is said to provide significant improvements to all previous versions of Drupal.

Importantly for marketing teams, the new version allows them to publish complex content easily by using new content editor features. These include better video embed support, an upgraded media library, a workspaces feature for improved workflow moderation, and important layout changes. Of course, as with all major updates, users will still notice overall fixes and testing improvements.

Megan Sanicki, the Executive Director of the Drupal Association, who leaves the association toward the end of this month, says: “Drupal 8.6 is a significant upgrade because of its emphasis on ease of use.
“This version levels up the customer experience, making it easier and less expensive to migrate from older versions, easier to install, as well as easier for marketing teams to deliver impact, faster.
“With a highly engaged community focused on delivering features that make customers shine, I’m excited about this release and what is on the horizon for Drupal.”

What’s different in Drupal 8.6.0?

A noteworthy feature in the new Drupal version is its improved migration support. This update makes it easier for users to migrate from Drupal 6 and 7 to Drupal 8. Also new is built in stable support for embedding remote media, like YouTube and Vimeo videos. In an experimental module, you’re able to now browse existing media and add new media.

Another exciting improvement are the layout capabilities. Rather than being limited to fields stacked on top of each other, users can create layouts with dynamic sections – creating opportunities for custom layouts. Another important change is the opportunity to add content to a specific layout. This is useful for a promotion that is only visible on a single landing page.

“This update is full of new and exciting features which show that Drupal is the go-to platform for ambitious digital experiences,” says Sanicki.

There are a number of other important changes, which we at Rogerwilco, as Drupal development specialists, will be experimenting with in the coming weeks and months.

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